In the printing industry, there is an unfilled need to be able to apply printed matter, either in the form of ink or labels, to a interior surface of hollow articles. One important example of this need is in the tape business, where one of the best places to place identification information is on the inner surface of the hollow cylindrical tape core about which a roll of tape is wound.
The present invention meets this need in an economical, high print quality system which can handle relatively high rates of printing of interior surfaces of hollow circularly cylindrical articles, as well as other surfaces such as interior surfaces of hollow rectangular, elliptical, triangular, and other regular or irregular shapes.